10 Best Dark Souls Games That AREN'T Dark Souls

In appearance this game hews closely to the Dark Souls aesthetic: you’ll explore gloomy forsaken places fighting against hordes of undead knights and other monsters. If you’ve played your fair share of FromSoftware titles and Soulslikes over the past decade, you might be inclined to skip this game thinking you’ve seen it all before.

However, Mortal Shell has a number of innovations which makes it easy to recommend to veterans and newcomers alike.

In place of more traditional character builds we now have “Shells”.

“Shells” are corpses which can be possessed by the ghost-like player character, named the Foundling. The game currently features four “Shells” which fit neatly into various fantasy archetypes such as knights, rogues, and mages; each “Shell” can be customised through their own unique skill trees. Switching between these “Shells” gives players more freedom and helps to avoid the common problem of new players committing to a character build - only to discover ten hours into the game they’ve picked a dud class and inadvertently chosen to play on hard mode.

Another innovation is the “Hardening” mechanic. This ability briefly transforms your character into solid stone, allowing you to tank through even the most devastating of attacks without suffering any damage and putting your opponent on the back foot at the same time.

Mortal Shell could be the perfect game to check out if you’re needing something to scratch that itch while we wait for more news on Elden Ring.